In using an imaging or image-recording device, such as a camera, to view or record still or moving images it is sometimes advantageous to change the direction of view or image path so that the capturing device is not oriented in the same direction as the subject being viewed, but is, for example, perpendicular to the direction of the subject being viewed. A way of achieving this change in optical direction is through the incorporation of a mirror element.
This is useful in many and varied ways. The following examples describe the mirror element as used with the camera of various imaging and image-recording devices:                The mirror enables taking a photo or video without calling attention to oneself or the subject;        It allows using a camera, such as a smartphone camera, in situations that are normally constrained by the size of the smartphone and the position of its camera, such as using the camera to assist with hanging a picture on a wall, where the mirror element can enable “seeing” behind the picture from the edge, while the person hanging the picture can view the hanger on the smartphone display and properly position the picture on the hanger; or, using the camera when working on the engine of a car, where the smartphone display can be viewed by the mechanic while positioning the smartphone/mirror to view objects that are blocked from direct viewing because of their location in the engine compartment;        It allows a person to view or record a potentially dangerous scene while protected from the danger by a barrier—only the mirror element needs to be clear of the barrier, while the person can view the scene on the camera display or monitor. For example, with the invention installed on a smartphone, a news reporter in a war-zone behind a wall of sandbags, with shooting going on, can deploy the mirror element and hold the smartphone so that the mirror is just past the edge of the barrier, allowing the reporter to view or record the scene on the smartphone display, risking only the mirror device and possibly the smartphone.        
In view of this, it would be desirable to develop a mirror element that can be easily and quickly deployed, and that the mirror element is compact and unobtrusive in both the deployed and the undeployed positions.